EP1758473B1 - Verfahren zur herstellng eines zigarettenfilters - Google Patents

Verfahren zur herstellng eines zigarettenfilters Download PDF

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Publication number
EP1758473B1
EP1758473B1 EP05733520A EP05733520A EP1758473B1 EP 1758473 B1 EP1758473 B1 EP 1758473B1 EP 05733520 A EP05733520 A EP 05733520A EP 05733520 A EP05733520 A EP 05733520A EP 1758473 B1 EP1758473 B1 EP 1758473B1
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EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
spindle
shell
plunger
granules
cylindrical chamber
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Not-in-force
Application number
EP05733520A
Other languages
English (en)
French (fr)
Other versions
EP1758473A1 (de
Inventor
Fiorenzo Draghetti
Ivan Eusepi
Armando Turrini
Vittorio Sgrignuoli
Leonardo Balletti
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
GD SpA
Original Assignee
GD SpA
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Publication date
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Publication of EP1758473A1 publication Critical patent/EP1758473A1/de
Application granted granted Critical
Publication of EP1758473B1 publication Critical patent/EP1758473B1/de
Not-in-force legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

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Classifications

    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
    • A24D—CIGARS; CIGARETTES; TOBACCO SMOKE FILTERS; MOUTHPIECES FOR CIGARS OR CIGARETTES; MANUFACTURE OF TOBACCO SMOKE FILTERS OR MOUTHPIECES
    • A24D3/00—Tobacco smoke filters, e.g. filter-tips, filtering inserts; Filters specially adapted for simulated smoking devices; Mouthpieces for cigars or cigarettes
    • A24D3/02—Manufacture of tobacco smoke filters
    • A24D3/0204—Preliminary operations before the filter rod forming process, e.g. crimping, blooming
    • A24D3/0212—Applying additives to filter materials
    • A24D3/0225—Applying additives to filter materials with solid additives, e.g. incorporation of a granular product
    • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A24—TOBACCO; CIGARS; CIGARETTES; SIMULATED SMOKING DEVICES; SMOKERS' REQUISITES
    • A24D—CIGARS; CIGARETTES; TOBACCO SMOKE FILTERS; MOUTHPIECES FOR CIGARS OR CIGARETTES; MANUFACTURE OF TOBACCO SMOKE FILTERS OR MOUTHPIECES
    • A24D3/00—Tobacco smoke filters, e.g. filter-tips, filtering inserts; Filters specially adapted for simulated smoking devices; Mouthpieces for cigars or cigarettes
    • A24D3/04—Tobacco smoke filters characterised by their shape or structure

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to a method of production of a cigarette filter.
  • shop-bought filter-tipped cigarettes comprised a filter made solely of one portion of cellulose acetate formed from a strip of cellulose acetate, which is stretched, impregnated with plasticizing additives, and rolled to form a cylindrical rod which is then wrapped in a sheet of paper material.
  • a filter made of a single portion of cellulose acetate is capable of blocking and retaining course particulate and moisture present in tobacco smoke, but fails to adequately block volatile substances in the smoke.
  • a cigarette filter has recently been proposed, in which a further filtering portion, comprising active-carbon granules, is interposed between two portions of cellulose acetate.
  • active-carbon granules are interposed between two portions of cellulose acetate.
  • US3066681A1 discloses a cigarette comprising a cylindrical body of tobacco, a wrapping sheet around the tobacco, and a cylindrical cartridge proximate one end of the tobacco body and in alignment therewith including a liquid-impregnated porous mass of filter material, a shell having a liquid proof cartridge wrapper around the mass of filter material, and means extending across at least one end of the cartridge wrapper including a liquid proof and smoke-permeable membrane.
  • GB1329956A discloses a tobacco-smoke filter comprising at least three different filtering agents, at least one of which agents is primarily intended to remove smoke components with a particle diameter of more than 0.1 micron, and at least one other of which agents is a polar adsorption agent intended to remove chemically polar smoke components with a particle diameter of less than 0.1 micron.
  • the specified polar adsorption agent is porous magnesium silicate of 0.1-2.0 mm particle size, and the agent for removing particles of more than 0.1 micron diameter may be a wad of cellulose acetate or crepe paper.
  • An example of a method of production of a cigarette filter is disclosed in EP-A-0623291 .>
  • Number 1 in Figures 1 and 2 indicates as a whole a cigarette, which is cylindrical with a central axis 2 of symmetry, and comprises a filter 3 and a tobacco portion 4 joined to each other by a band 5 of paper material.
  • Filter 3 comprises a passive filtering portion 6 located at the opposite end of filter 3 to tobacco portion 4, and which is engaged orally by the user; an organic filtering portion 7 comprising granules or fibres 8 of active carbon or other organic substance; and a further passive filtering portion 9 located at the end of filter 3 contacting tobacco portion 4. Passive filtering portions 6, 9 and organic filtering portion 7 are joined to one another by a band 10 of paper material.
  • Passive filtering portions 6 and 9 are preferably made of cellulose acetate, and in particular from a strip of cellulose acetate, which is stretched, impregnated with plasticizing additives, and rolled to form a cylindrical rod which is then wrapped in a sheet of paper material.
  • Organic filtering portion 7 is housed inside a cartridge or shell 11 having a bottom wall 12 from which a cylindrical lateral wall 13 extends upwards.
  • Bottom wall 12 and cylindrical lateral wall 13 define a seat 14 housing active-carbon granules 8, and which is bounded and closed at the top by a filtering plug 15 made of cellulose acetate and pressed inside seat 14 at the opposite end to bottom wall 12.
  • Shell 11 is preferably made of plastic or any other material impermeable to air and/or smoke.
  • passive filtering portion 9 may be dispensed with, or passive filtering portion 6 may be integral with shell 11.
  • a particulate trap 16 for retaining fine particulate is embedded in bottom wall 12 of shell 11, and is defined by a porous membrane (or porous-membrane filter).
  • particulate trap 16 is defined by a mesh (or mesh filter) with an average mesh size of roughly 1 micron.
  • particulate trap 16 blocks and retains particulate of an average diameter of over 1 micron.
  • particulate trap 16 blocks and retains particulate of an average diameter of over 0.2 or 5 microns.
  • the filtering capacity of particulate trap 16 is normally selected according to the characteristics of the tobacco in tobacco portion 4 and of the organic substance in organic filtering portion 7.
  • shell 11 is oriented with bottom wall 12, and therefore particulate trap 16, between passive filtering portion 6 and organic filtering portion 7.
  • Figure 3 shows a double filter defined by the union of two filters 3 of the type described above. More specifically, the two filters 3 are joined at respective passive filtering portions 6, which preferably form one body which is cut in half to separate the two filters 3.
  • the organic substance When hot smoke flows through granules of an organic substance, particularly active-carbon granules 8, the organic substance has been found to release into the smoke fine particulate of less than 10-micron average diameter (known as "PM10"), and which is blocked and retained by particulate trap 16 located downstream from active-carbon granules 8.
  • the smoke produced by tobacco combustion contains course particulate (which is blocked by passive filtering portion 9) but substantially no fine particulate; and the smoke, as it flows through organic filtering portion 7, is charged with fine particulate released by organic filtering portion 7 itself, and which is blocked and retained by particulate trap 16.
  • Fine particulate is especially harmful to health, in that, whereas course particulate is expelled from the lungs, fine particulate adheres inside the alveoli and is never expelled, not even after a prolonged period of time.
  • Figures 4 to 11 show, schematically, a sequence of operations by which to produce a cigarette filter 3 of the type shown in Figure 1 . More specifically, the operations in Figures 4 to 11 relate to filling shell 11 with active-carbon granules 8, and subsequently fitting plug 15 to shell 11.
  • Figure 4 shows an empty shell 11 having cylindrical bottom wall 12, from which lateral wall 13 extends vertically upwards. More specifically, initially, the axial length of lateral wall 13 is greater than the axial length of lateral wall 13 of the finished filter 3.
  • a plug 15 is fed into position over an inlet 17 of a vertical tubular spindle 18.
  • a plunger 19 is inserted inside spindle 18 through inlet 17 to force plug 15, resting against a thrust surface 20 of plunger 19, inside spindle 18 (more specifically, plug 15 contracts elastically to enter spindle 18).
  • a cylindrical chamber 21 is thus defined, is bounded at the top by plug 15 and laterally by the wall of spindle 18, and has an open bottom end coincident with an outlet 22 of spindle 18.
  • spindle 18 and plunger 19 are inserted inside a container 23 of active-carbon granules 8 to fill cylindrical chamber 21 with active-carbon granules 8, which are retained inside cylindrical chamber 21 by generating suction through thrust surface 20 of plunger 19; for which purpose, thrust surface 20 of plunger 19 comprises a number of holes (not shown) smaller than active-carbon granules 8 and connected pneumatically to a suction pump (not shown) by a connecting conduit (not shown) extending inside plunger 19.
  • suction inside cylindrical chamber 21 is also generated through the lateral wall of spindle 18.
  • spindle 18, carrying active-carbon granules 8 is inserted partly inside shell 11.
  • active-carbon granules 8 are fed from cylindrical chamber 21 into shell 11 by moving plunger 19 axially with respect to spindle 18 and simultaneously cutting off suction through thrust surface 20 of plunger 19.
  • the thrust movement of plunger 19 injects into shell 11 both active-carbon granules 8 and plug 15, which, as it comes out through the outlet of spindle 18, expands elastically to press tightly against the inner wall of shell 11.
  • lateral wall 13 of shell 11 is cut to shorten it to the axial length of the finished filter 3.
  • Figure 12 shows a cigarette 1, which differs from the cigarette in Figures 1 and 2 by having no filtering portion 9 and no band 10, and by bottom wall 12 of shell 11 being an annular wall hermetically supporting particulate trap 16. More specifically, trap 16 is glued to the face of wall 12 facing inwards of shell 11.
  • shell 11 may also be made from the same material and/or with the same structure as trap 16, regardless of whether trap 16 is embedded in wall 12 or glued to the face of wall 12 facing inwards of shell 11.

Landscapes

  • Cigarettes, Filters, And Manufacturing Of Filters (AREA)

Claims (10)

  1. Verfahren zum Herstellen eines Filters (3) für eine Zigarette (1), wobei der Filter einen organischen Filterungsabschnitt (7) enthält, der seinerseits Granulat (8) einer organischen Substanz aufweiset und in einer zylindrischen Hülle (11) untergebracht ist; wobei das Verfahren gekennzeichnet ist durch die folgenden Schritte:
    Einsetzen eines Kolbens (19) in eine rohrförmige Spindel (18), um in der Spindel (18) eine zylindrische Kammer (21) zu definieren;
    Einsetzen der Spindel (18) und des Kolbens (19) in einen Behälter (23), der Granulat (8) der organischen Substanz enthält, um so die zylindrische Kammer (21) mit Granulat (8) der organischen Substanz zu füllen;
    Halten des Granulats (8) der organischen Substanz in der zylindrischen Kammer (21) durch Saugwirkung;
    Einsetzen der Spindel (18) teilweise in die Hülle (11);
    Befördern des Granulats (8) der organischen Substanz von der zylindrischen Kammer (21) der Spindel (18) in die Hülle (11) durch axiales Bewegen des Kolbens (19) in Bezug auf die Spindel (18); und
    Herausziehen der Spindel (18) und des Kolbens (19) aus der Hülle (11).
  2. Verfahren nach Anspruch 1, das den weiteren Schritt des Bringens eines elastischen Stopfens (15) in eine Position über einem Einlass (17) der Spindel (18) umfasst, bevor der Kolben (19) durch den Einlass (17) in die Spindel (18) eingesetzt wird; wobei der Stopfen (15) dann, wenn der Kolben (19) durch den Einlass (17) in die Spindel (18) eingesetzt wird, durch den Kolben (19) längs der Spindel (18) geschoben wird, um eine Bodenwand (12) der zylindrischen Kammer (21) zu bilden; wobei das Granulat (8) der organischen Substanz der zylindrischen Kammer (21) durch einen Auslass (22) der Spindel (18) gegenüber dem Einlass (17) zugeführt wird; und der Stopfen (15) von der Spindel (18) zusammen mit dem Granulat (8) der organischen Substanz in die Hülle (11) befördert wird, indem der Kolben (19) axial in Bezug auf die Spindel (18) bewegt wird.
  3. Verfahren nach Anspruch 1 oder 2, wobei die Saugwirkung in der zylindrischen Kammer (21) durch eine Schubfläche (20) des Kolbens (19) erzeugt wird.
  4. Verfahren nach Anspruch 1 oder 2, wobei die Saugwirkung in der zylindrischen Kammer (21) durch die Seitenwand der Spindel (18) erzeugt wird.
  5. Verfahren nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 4, wobei die Hülle (11) eine Seitenwand (13) mit einer axialen Länge, die größer als die axiale Länge derselben Seitenwand (13) des fertig gestellten Filters (3) ist, umfasst; wobei ein Endabschnitt der Seitenwand (13) abgeschnitten wird, nachdem die Spindel (18) aus der Hülle (11) herausgezogen worden ist.
  6. Verfahren nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 5, wobei zunächst nur die Spindel (18) aus der Hülle (11) herausgezogen wird und der Kolben (19) unbeweglich bleibt.
  7. Verfahren nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 6, wobei eine Partikelfalle (16) zum Zurückhalten feiner Partikel an einer Bodenfläche der Hülle (11) angeordnet ist.
  8. Verfahren nach Anspruch 7, wobei die Partikelfalle (16) durch eine poröse Membran (16) definiert ist.
  9. Verfahren nach Anspruch 7, wobei die Partikelfalle (16) durch ein Sieb definiert ist.
  10. Verfahren nach einem der Ansprüche 1 bis 9, wobei der organische Filterungsabschnitt (7) Granulat oder Fasern (8) aus Aktivkohlenstoff enthält.
EP05733520A 2004-04-22 2005-04-20 Verfahren zur herstellng eines zigarettenfilters Not-in-force EP1758473B1 (de)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IT000238A ITBO20040238A1 (it) 2004-04-22 2004-04-22 Filtro per sigaretta e relativo metodo di realizzazione
PCT/EP2005/051741 WO2005102080A1 (en) 2004-04-22 2005-04-20 Cigarette filter and relative production method

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
EP1758473A1 EP1758473A1 (de) 2007-03-07
EP1758473B1 true EP1758473B1 (de) 2008-11-26

Family

ID=34956379

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
EP05733520A Not-in-force EP1758473B1 (de) 2004-04-22 2005-04-20 Verfahren zur herstellng eines zigarettenfilters

Country Status (7)

Country Link
US (1) US7625328B2 (de)
EP (1) EP1758473B1 (de)
JP (1) JP2007533314A (de)
AT (1) ATE415105T1 (de)
DE (1) DE602005011282D1 (de)
IT (1) ITBO20040238A1 (de)
WO (1) WO2005102080A1 (de)

Families Citing this family (13)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US7479099B2 (en) 2004-11-05 2009-01-20 Philip Morris Usa Inc. Vertical filter filling machine and process
WO2008075032A1 (en) * 2006-12-19 2008-06-26 Filtrona International Limited Tobacco smoke filter
US9204668B2 (en) 2007-09-18 2015-12-08 Philip Morris Usa Inc. Cigarette filter
US20100006112A1 (en) * 2007-12-20 2010-01-14 Philip Morris Usa, Inc. Filter including randomly-oriented fibers for reduction of particle breakthrough
CA2740530C (en) 2008-09-17 2013-11-19 Yonglin Liang Independent, tobacco addiction-dispelling and detoxifying filter rod and cigarette holder, and process for manufacturing the same
US8534294B2 (en) 2009-10-09 2013-09-17 Philip Morris Usa Inc. Method for manufacture of smoking article filter assembly including electrostatically charged fiber
ITBO20110331A1 (it) * 2011-06-08 2012-12-09 Gd Spa Metodo e macchina mettifiltro per realizzare sigarette con filtro.
ITAN20120002A1 (it) * 2012-01-12 2013-07-13 Stefania Romagnoli Filtro per sigarette modulare
US9574922B2 (en) 2013-03-15 2017-02-21 Hauni Maschinenbau Gmbh Method and apparatus for metering of loose objects, such as granular objects, powders, or capsules
US20140261470A1 (en) * 2013-03-15 2014-09-18 Hauni Maschinenbau Ag Method and apparatus for assembly of multi-segmented cylindrical products, such as tobacco products
ITUB20154735A1 (it) * 2015-10-19 2017-04-19 Gd Spa Dispositivo saldatore e metodo per la sua realizzazione.
EP3873270B1 (de) * 2018-10-29 2023-08-23 Imperial Tobacco Limited Länglicher rauchartikel
EP3769632A1 (de) * 2019-07-23 2021-01-27 Nerudia Ltd. Länglicher rauchartikel

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Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
DE602005011282D1 (de) 2009-01-08
US7625328B2 (en) 2009-12-01
EP1758473A1 (de) 2007-03-07
US20080029115A1 (en) 2008-02-07
ATE415105T1 (de) 2008-12-15
WO2005102080A1 (en) 2005-11-03
JP2007533314A (ja) 2007-11-22
ITBO20040238A1 (it) 2004-07-22

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